History

By the mid-1800s the city of Dayton was a thriving center of commerce.  As more and more people immigrated to America, the city's German population rapidly outgrew the original parishes of the city, Emmanuel and Sacred Heart.  Germans wanted a parish that would reflect their unique devotional practices and in 1859 St. Mary Church was established on what was then the outskirts of the city.  It's first pastor, Fr. Johann Schiff, offered the first Mass on August 15, 1860, the patronal feast day of Our Lady of the Assumption.  A school was soon established, staffed until 1893 by Sisters of Notre Dame.

In 1869, Fr. Henry L. Stuckenborg succeeded Fr. Schiff.  Under his direction the rectory (1871) and school building (1878) were constructed.  Sisters of the Precious Blood staffed the school from 1893 until 1969.  After service to thousands of children it was closed in 1971.  Its alumni organized in 1993 and are still active, even those living far away, in supporting the parish and providing scholarships for St. Mary students attending other parish schools.

Fr. Joseph Lutz served the parish for two years (1901-1903) and was succeeded by Fr. Charles S. Kemper (1903-1913).  While he was pastor, the last Mass was said in the old church (March 15, 1905) and a new church was begun (July 2, 1905).  The next year (November 18, 1906) the new church was dedicated and the magnificent stained glass windows illustrating the life of Mary were installed.

The pastorate of Fr. Otto B. Auer (1914-1917) was a difficult one for parishioners as war broke out in Europe and the homeland became the enemy.  Despite the poverty of the time, the parish established a high school in 1917, which lasted until 1926.

In the aftermath of the war, the parish began to thrive along with the rest of America and was the beginning of the tenure of St. Mary's longest-lived and most memorable pastor, Fr. Bernard J. Beckmeyer.  He led the parish from 1917 to 1967, from World War I to the era of Vatican II.  During those days the parish built on strong physical and spiritual foundations that serve it even now.  In 1920 the current Austin organ was installed and the church was decorated with paintings and marble work.

Fr. Beckmeyer renovated the church and rectory, expanded the grammar school and purchased the entire city block (the area of Twin Towers Place).  He led the parish in the liquidation of a $70,000 debt, a great sum for the time.  In addition, he sponsored a lending library and informational classes for non-Catholics during the early 1920s when the Ku Klux Klan was active in Dayton.  Msgr. Beckmeyer's tenure also saw a succession of garden parties and many social and devotional events.

Fr. Beckmeyer was an avid reader and collector of books, especially moral theology and travelogues.  He shared his love of reading by establishing a lending library for the parish.  His interest in travels took him and a group of parishioners on a tour of Europe shortly after World War I.  During his tenure, eighteen sons of the parish became priests and one of these became a bishop, Frank A. Thill (Salina, Kansas, 1944-1957).  In 1944 Fr. Beckmeyer became a Monsignor.  His bequest to the parish was a richly decorated church.  He was responsible for installation of the first microphone and speakers in a Catholic church in Dayton and for an electric bell-ringing system.  His legacy to the larger Dayton community lives on in the books of the Bernard J. Beckmeyer Special Collection at the University of Dayton's U.S. Catholic Collection.

Msgr. Beckmeyer's successors, Frs. Walter J. Sterwef (1969-1972) and Kenneth Henz (1972-1984) helped the parish navigate the reforms mandated by Vatican II and changes in the city of Dayton.  The population of this now rust-belt city declined.  The neighborhood's ethnicities changed from largely German and Irish Catholic to non-Catholic Appalachians as the children of long-time parishioners moved to the suburbs, decreasing the parish census.  Owner-occupied homes became rental units.  In the early 1960s, may homes and businesses within the parish were demolished as U.S. 35 cut the parish in two.  By the late sixties neighborhood decay was palpable and many predicted that the result of the construction of U.S. 35 would be the death knell of this community.  In 1971 the school was closed and even Fr. Henz was not sanguine about the survival of the parish.

However, St. Mary is a parish that refused to die.  The parish participated in the updating of Catholicism after Vatican II.  In 1974 a new altar was placed so the priest could face the people.  The first Mass there was for Msgr. Beckmeyer.  In 1976, three men were ordained permanent deacons for service in the parish:  Arthur Kronenberger, Vincent Orlando and William Saluke.  Looking toward the future, the parish also honored the past.  In 1983 the church was placed on the National Register of Historic Places, one of the few churches to be so honored for its historic and architectural significance as the only Romanesque church in Dayton.

In addition, the parish adjusted to changes in the neighborhood.  In 1973 the St. Vincent de Paul Society began its work serving the physical needs of the poor of the neighborhood, a senior citizens group began, and an annual picnic (still happening) was started.  In 1978 the parish sold property next to the church and school for the establishment of Eastway Community Mental Health Center.  Under Fr. Thomas M. Gavin (pastor 1984-1992), Fr. Chris Rohmiller (administrator after Fr. Gavin's death (1992-1994), and Fr. Thomas Gaeke (1994-2000), members reached out to area residents and visitors.

In 1989 a member of the parish, Sister Rose (Mary Lou) Wildenhaus, assisted Dick McBride in establishing St. Mary Development Corporation (SMDC) to rehabilitate the housing stock of the area and promote owner occupation of homes.  SMDC gave birth to East End Community Services Corporation (EECSC) to improve neighborhood living conditions.  The parish donated the former school playground for the construction of Twin Towers Place (1993).  This provided the housing needs for low-income, especially elderly, residents.  EECSC continues today to serve the neighborhood as an independent community development organization.

In the last decade of the twentieth century, this parish alone in all of East Dayton saw a rise in the number of parishioners.  The organ was refurbished in 1996 and the stained glass windows in 1999.  St. Mary's hosted a series of organ and choral concerts, which brought more people into this beautiful church.

Fr. Gaeke's tenure was not unlike Msgr. Beckmeyer's.  In 1905-1906, Beckmeyer had pastored churches in Dayton, Versailles, Dublin and Osgood — without the benefit of an automobile.  In 1995 Fr. Gaeke became pastor of Holy Family in addition to St. Mary.  Fr. Gaeke's years also saw something Msgr. Beckmeyer might never have dreamed of — weekly bingo.  Fr. John Krumm inherited both parishes in 2000 and has led the Catholic Urban Presence task force as it seeks to find ways for parishes in the center of Dayton to share ministries and continue evangelization and service to the Dayton community.

In 2009 Fr. Francis Tandoh, inherited St. Mary and Holy Family parishes. He is currently the Mission Coordinator for the Holy Spirit Fathers.  Along with servicing St. Benedict parish he works together with all to expand the missionary work of God with affection and love for the good of his parishioners and the community. 

Throughout its history St. Mary Parish has been known for its devotional life and commitment to the poor of the neighborhood.  The parish has sponsored an annual May crowning and Sunday rosary recitation in May and October.  Since 1918 members of the parish have annually built a two-story crèche that tens of thousands of people have visited.  Complementing it since 1986 is a Resurrection grotto.  Since 1951 the parish has hoisted a sixteen-foot electrical star between the twin towers of the church to illuminate the Christmastime sky.  The neighborhood itself is still know as Twin Towers.

As the parish faces the challenges of the twenty-first century, it continues to serve the neighborhood as ans educational center, a polling place, a food pantry, and a spiritual home where a Bible Study Group, Small Church Communities and regular parish activities such as rummage sales, bingo, and fish frys sustain the spirit.

~ Maureen A. Tilly
May 2005
Rev. March 2013, EC

The turn of the new millennium saw the increase in the Hispanic community, bringing immigrants from throughout the Americas. Their deep Catholic faith and need for a new spiritual home in Dayton led them to St. Mary Church. Hispanic Ministry was started in 2011 with Sr. Maria Stacy, SND as its first Assistant Director. Since then, we have been blessed to have Masses and faith formation in Spanish and celebrations from Latin America such as Our Lady of Guadalupe.

On July 1, 2021, Fr. Satish Joseph became pastor of St. Mary Church. On July 1, 2022, as part of the Archdiocesan pastoral plan called Beacons of Light, St. Mary became part of the Bread of Life/Pan de Vida Family of Parishes with St. Anthony of Padua Church (Linden Heights), St. Helen Church (Riverside), Church of the Holy Angels (South Park), and Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception Church (Belmont). Fr. Satish became pastor of the family of parishes.

Rev. Oct 2025